


Like True Love

by DoreyG



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU, Green Lantern (Comics)
Genre: Clark as a Hopeless Mother Hen, Community: comment_fic, Conversations, Gossip, Implied Relationships, M/M, Protectiveness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-24
Updated: 2015-11-24
Packaged: 2018-05-03 04:52:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5277386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoreyG/pseuds/DoreyG
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I’m sure you care at least a little,” he sniffs, indignantly.</p>
<p>“You would be alarmed at how much I don’t,” Bruce says dryly, and returns to whatever he was doing on the laptop. Boring bat stuff, probably. He knows how to do boring bat stuff, but he doesn’t know how to update his relationship status on facebook, “don’t you have anything better to do?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like True Love

“You know what Barry tried to tell me today?” He starts cheerfully, throwing himself into the chair across from Bruce. It’s an old chair, that creaks worryingly whenever he drops his weight on it, but Bruce glares at him every time he sits there so it’s so totally worth it, “it was _hilarious_ -“

“I highly doubt that,” Bruce interrupts him, glaring as expected, and only continues to glare as he snorts defiantly in reply. Which, you know, _rude_ but entirely expected, “and I don’t care.”

“I’m sure you care at least a little,” he sniffs, indignantly.

“You would be alarmed at how much I don’t,” Bruce says dryly, and returns to whatever he was doing on the laptop. Boring bat stuff, probably. He knows how to do boring bat stuff, but he doesn’t know how to update his relationship status on facebook, “don’t you have anything better to do?”

“Nope,” he scowls, defiantly.

“Not even in space?”

“Not even in space,” he confirms stubbornly, as Bruce heaves an unholy sigh and starts typing again. He fancies that it’s heavier than before, and briefly entertains the thought that maybe the bastard will break his laptop with the force of his brooding, “anyway, we were sitting in the Watchtower cafeteria-“

“Don’t you _ever_ have anything better to do?” Bruce grumbles, without looking up.

“I frequently have better things to do! Just not _today_ ,” he snaps, and keeps going nonetheless. They’ve been doing this for a while, if he lets Bruce divert him right away it’s just not _worth_ it, “we were talking, in our usual incredibly cool manner, and we got on to talking about relationships.”

“How interesting,” Bruce sighs, still not looking up, “and meaningful.”

“I think so,” he sniffs, and carries on. Because Bruce might be bound to his laptop with pure dickishness, but that’s just something to take advantage of, “the most interesting and meaningful thing in the _universe_. Or, at least, the most interesting and meaningful thing in the universe after he got done deciding which one of his Rogues to go on a date with this week-“

“What?”

“-And we got onto _me_.”

“…Barry’s relationship with his rogues is frequently disturbing and inadvisable,” Bruce decides, glancing briefly up from his laptop to frown all the more effectively, “I’d forcibly tell him to stop it, but I worry that they’d storm the watchtower and have an orgy right in the middle of the camera room.”

“I- right,” he mutters, because that seems the best response to Bruce’s rampant paranoia a good most of the time, “he asked me who I was seeing, if that’s of interest in between all the mental orgies that are going on.”

“It isn’t,” Bruce blatantly lies, and even has the gall to pause thoughtfully as he heaves a huge sigh and glares right at the centre of his forehead, “I’m guessing you answered that you were currently seeing me?”

“No, I told him I was seeing Sinestro,” he smirks, just to get Bruce to leave his damned laptop behind and glance up with nostrils flaring and teeth gritted in a way so jealous that it’s all he can do to avoid exulting at it, “of course I said you, you _jerk_. Who else was I in bed with last night?”

“Unless invisible assassins broke in…” Bruce sniffs, and it takes him a long moment to realize that that’s what passes for a joke in insane Batman land, “what was his reaction?”

“I thought you didn’t care?” He teases.

“I… Don’t.”

“Are you _sure_?”

“ _Hal_ -“

“That’s the hilarious part,” he decides to take mercy, before Bruce either honestly loses interest or throws the laptop at his head for being such a mouthy little shit on such a constant basis, “he asked me if I was insane, and told me that it was deeply unhealthy and at least he actually _liked_ his rogues most of the time.”

“In between them robbing banks.”

“That’s what I thought!”

“Hm,” Bruce say thoughtfully. And, to his complete and utter lack of surprise… Actually smiles, as if he’s amused.

Wait. What?

“You’re smiling,” he says, and watches with a profound amount of worry as Bruce’s smile only grows. He’s seen that look on Bruce’s face only a few times before, he’d pretty sure that unicorns are less rare than that, “why… Why are you smiling? Is something wrong? Are you dying, or something? Am _I_ dying?”

“No,” Bruce smiles, ever so calm. Because he wasn’t worried enough, and needed more terror just to make this moment that little bit more _complete_ , “nothing of the sort, it’s just… Clark sat me down a few missions back.”

“Okay,” he starts, perhaps a touch warily (which he thinks can be excused, considering the situation), “Clark regularly does that, your point is?”

“Clark had noticed how close we were getting,” Bruce continues to smile. Which, you know, is an understatement if he’s ever heard one, “and wanted to check how I was feeling about the whole thing. Do you know what he said?”

“…No,” he shakes his head, tries to resist the urge to do something far more dramatic, “I can’t read minds, Bats, we’ve had this discussion.”

“Have we?”

“Fight, same difference.”

“Hm,” Bruce says, and just keeps smiling. He knows that it’s a small thing to worry about, but good _god_ if it doesn’t half get his hackles up, “he asked me if I knew that it was insane, and told me that it was all deeply unhealthy and sordid and that he would be perfectly happy to help me seek help if I at all felt that I needed it.”

And…

His mouth gapes open, he splutters at Bruce as if he’s never heard of such a strange and puzzlesome thing before, “I… What?”

Bruce’s smile grows, transforms into a grin. Something rarer than a unicorn, a phoenix maybe?

“ _What?_ ”

“That’s exactly what I said,” Bruce grins, in a way that implies that there was far more internal laughter involved. Which is a truly terrifying thought, and he almost pities poor Clark for having to face it, “it was almost worrying, to watch his eyes bulge. You know what I think-?”

“Normal people,” he declares dazedly, entirely separate of whatever Bruce thinks or does or lurks over, “are _incredibly_ confusing.”

“ _Exactly_.”

They stare at each other for a second, thoughtfully.

…And this time, when he starts to slowly chuckle at the terribly boring normality of the rest of the universe, Bruce _almost_ joins in with him. Which is, you know, close enough to do him fine.


End file.
